Imaginative: Artisan 2017 Textile Designer Event

James Dunlop Textiles hosted an exclusive event to showcase brand-new collections by their European textile brands on 26 May at Hagley Oval Pavilion. Local New Zealand furniture manufacturer’s David Shaw, Kovacs, Montreux & Profile Furniture paired up with James Dunlop’s European brands to exhibit the synergy between local and international brands. I was only able to speak to two of the representatives from the international textile brands, however, the take-aways were inspiring.

Carrie Ferguson from Bluebellgray travelled to the event from Glasgow, Scotland. Ferguson was the first employee that the owner, Fi Douglas, hired once starting her company. The design studio has produced whimsical, water-coloured cheerful prints from the studio ever since its beginning. The Bluebellegray exhibition space showed off a gorgeous Kovacs sofa in a large-scale watercolour print named Big Rothesay which made an inviting & cheery impact to the entry of the exhibition space. Ferguson’s friendly manner and bright smile truly represented what the brand is all about; adding happiness to the world. When saying good-bye, Ferguson was swift to invite me to visit the Glasgow showroom if ever in Scotland, which I definitely hope to do one day.

Colours & Inspirational images used by the Christian Fischbacher design team

Camilla Fischbacher of Christian Fischbacher is an incredible story-teller and described the entire new collection of textiles with a group of designers at the event. I hardly sipped my glass of bubbles as she metaphorically whisked us away to their design studio in St. Gallen, Switzerland, showing us groups of threads and images used in the creation of recent textile releases. Fischbacher said that since the availability of free, downloadable images of historic paintings & art, such as the 400,000+ released by the Met, there has been an explosion of interest in the Masters across creative industries worldwide. The studio has taken available images and re-created their own modern masterpieces, a new artisan craft of digital decoupage.

Stunning Christian Fischbacher companion textile designs

The 200-year-old company has produced extravagant designs throughout the years, independent of current interior fashions, yet very relevant to high-end interior schemes. Over 6 generations the company has developed outstanding industry knowledge that gives them exclusivity and access to the very best

product on the market. The brand has developed a new way of creating colour stories, in which they release companion textiles for different functions in coordinating themes and hues. The new collection includes a dramatic 1950’s Miami style fan drape fabric with a coordinating glamourous stippled upholstery, along with a metallic sheer. The orange and purple are absolute stand-outs, and next time I buy a home in Palm Beach, these will be my go-to options!

Throughout the evening, I was also able to check out textiles from Designs Of The Time, Villa Nova, Kirkby Design & Zinc Textile. The new Norrland collection by Villa Nova brings a modern twist and neutral palette to traditional designs of Scandinavia, bringing a feeling of humble, snug nature into your home. The new Zinc Textile collection Bonheur is a tribute to haute couture fashion textiles of the Chanel era. Overall, the showcase revealed the overwhelming since that these brands produce textiles representing numerous historical references, sources of inspiration, differing colour palettes and moods. However, the binding rationale behind them is quality performance of materials, original style and authentic, long-standing brand names behind them all. Regardless of the client, their preferred “look” and their lifestyle, there are very unique, yet sincerely magnificent textile options among the James Dunlop brands.